Border of the Land of Rain
A biting gust of wind swept past as Deidara stood atop the back of a giant white bird he had sculpted from Explosive Clay, his long golden hair whipping wildly in the wind. He spread his arms wide and laughed wildly:
"Haha! Brother Scorpion, look at those idiots down there! Hmm!"
He pointed at the ninjas from various countries patrolling the ground like ants, his tone full of contempt.
"What kind of joint surveillance was this, with the Five Great Shinobi Villages? They couldn't even defend against the sky! Hmm! What an artistic flaw!"
Sasori of the Red Sands, hidden inside the Hiruko Puppet, let out a low, hoarse voice:
"Don't get too cocky, Deidara. You're not the only one in the Shinobi World who can fly."
"Tch, so what? Anyway, no one has found us yet, hmm!" Deidara curled his lip dismissively, maneuvering the giant bird to continue climbing, ensuring it was completely out of the sight of the ground ninjas.
Scorpion was silent for a moment, then said coldly:
"First, I'll go to the Land of Earth to replenish your clay, then I'll go to the Land of Crafts."
"The Land of Crafts? Oh! You're looking for new Puppet materials, right? Hmm!" Deidara's eyes lit up, and he excitedly patted the giant bird's head. "Then hold on tight! Speed up!"
With a flap of its wings, the giant bird suddenly increased its speed and sped off towards the north.
Ground-based surveillance outpost
Hyūga Aoki slowly closed his Byakugan, the veins on his forehead receding, but his expression remained unusually solemn.
"Send a message back to the village immediately!" he whispered to the communications ninja beside him. "Akatsuki members Sasori of the Red Sands and Deidara have just broken through the border surveillance from high altitude!"
"What?!" The Kumogakure beside him exclaimed, his expression changing drastically. "Which direction did they go?"
"The north is most likely the Land of Earth," Aoki said in a deep voice.
The intelligence was quickly transmitted back to Konoha via encrypted communication, and due to the temporary alliance of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, it was soon shared with the other ninja villages as well.
Iwagakure - Tsuchikage's Office
Ōnoki frowned as he looked at the intelligence scroll that had just been delivered.
"That Deidara brat... he actually dares to go back to the Land of Earth?"
He snorted coldly, but a complex look flashed in his eyes. After all, Deidara had once been his disciple, who had run away from the village because of his so-called art, and now he was a member of the Akatsuki.
"Pass down the order to strengthen border patrols, especially near the clay mines!"
"Lord Tsuchikage, should we intercept them directly?" an Anbu asked.
Ōnoki pondered for a moment, then shook his head:
"No, let's observe first. Akatsuki's situation is special right now; acting rashly could trigger unnecessary conflict."
He squinted, calculating in his mind.
"And... that kid Deidara might still be useful."
Konoha - Hokage's Office
Tsunade slammed her fist on the table, making the teacup jump.
"Are these guys about to make their move?!"
Shizune quickly steadied the teacup and whispered:
"According to intelligence, they are likely going to replenish supplies and have no immediate intention to attack."
"Hmph, who knows what they're plotting?" Tsunade sneered. "Order the border patrol to be on high alert! Also, notify Kakashi to be on standby!"
Sunagakure - Kazekage's Office
After listening quietly to the report, Baki said, "A scorpion...?"
Temari frowned and said, "He was also shown on the Heavenly Screen as the murderer of the Third Hokage. His appearance this time... should we take action?"
Baki was silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head. "Let's wait and see. The focus now is on observing the movements of other villages. We Sand Villagers cannot rashly start a war with Akatsuki."
"Send information about Sasori to Elder Chiyo first."
High in the sky - On the way to the Land of Earth
Deidara hummed a little tune, in a cheerful mood.
"Brother Scorpion, after we replenish the clay, I want to try out the newly developed 'C4 Garuda,' hmm!"
Sasori said coldly, "Don't bomb randomly in crowded places. I don't want to be hunted down by Five Great Shinobi Villages at the same time."
"Haha, don't worry! My art is only for those who deserve to appreciate it, hmm!"
The giant bird pierced through the clouds and sped towards the Land of Earth.
However, they did not know --
The eyes of the Five Great Shinobi Villages are already on them.
The White Zetsu Clones, lurking throughout the Shinobi World, are silently monitoring the movements of the various ninja villages. One group of White Zetsu is hiding in the forest outside Iwagakure, perfectly blending into the environment using the Spore Technique, making its presence difficult even for sensory ninjas to detect.
However, just as it was eavesdropping on the conversation of the Iwagakure patrolling ninja, a message that alerted it arrived—
"Have you heard? That 'Explosive Maniac' Deidara seems to be heading towards the border!"
"Hmph, that missing-nin dares to approach the Land of Earth? We must capture him this time!"
White Zetsu's pupils contracted slightly, and it inwardly cried out, "Damn it, they've already discovered Deidara's whereabouts!" It quickly relayed the information back to Black Zetsu.
Inside the underground cave, Black Zetsu received a message from White Zetsu with a grim face.
"How foolish!" its hoarse voice was filled with anger. "We warned them not to reveal their whereabouts so easily, and they were still discovered!"
White Zetsu said sheepishly from the side, "That Deidara guy always likes to make a big fuss; he probably blew something up somewhere again."
Black Zetsu glanced at it coldly. "Now is not the time to shirk responsibility. We must notify them immediately!" It quickly ordered, "Send White Zetsu to the border of the Land of Earth immediately, find Deidara and Sasori, and tell them to be careful and not get surrounded by the Iwagakure ninja!"